Ailish Tynan was born in Mullingar, Ireland, and studied at Trinity College and the Royal Irish Academy of Music in Dublin and the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, London. In 2003 Ailish represented Ireland in the BBC Cardiff Singer of the World Competition, winning the BBC Singer of the World Rosenblatt Recital Prize. Other awards include the Maggie Teyte Competition/Miriam Licette Award and the RTE Millennium Singer of the Future.

Whilst a member of the former Vilar Young Artist Programme at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, her roles included Papagena in Die Zauberflöte, First Niece in Peter Grimes, Xenia in Boris Godunov and Second Wood Nymph in Rusalka. She has also appeared with Welsh National Opera, Opera Ireland and Seattle Opera, and with orchestras including the BBC Symphony Orchestra, the Hallé Orchestra, RTE National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland, and the Scottish Chamber Orchestra at the 2006 BBC Proms. As a former BBC New Generation Artist, Ailish is also a regular contributor on BBC Radio 3.

As a recitalist, Ailish has collaborated with distinguished accompanists including Malcolm Martineau, Graham Johnston, Julius Drake, Iain Burnside and Barry Douglas, giving recitals at the Edinburgh International Festival, Wigmore Hall and St John's Smith Square, London; her recording of songs of Judith Weir, with Ian Burnside, was released in 2006 on the Signum Classics label.